Do you regret your career choice? What would you have done otherwise?

[morgan98]

I would not say I regret my career choice as it fits my personality and I am good at it. Because if that, I have found a niche for myself, am valued in my industry and am in a great spot financially. Am I completely in love with my job and over the moon about it? No, but I am satisfied enough. It allows me to live very comfortably and to pursue my interests outside of work. I guess I could have chosen something that I love, but paid substantially less and be financially limited in pursuing other interests.

One of my biggest interests from a very young age was crime scene investigation/true-crime. Seems very strange for something for a junior high student to enjoy, but I did enjoying reading about various cases. I am almost 47, so this was long before shows like CSI or Criminal Minds. I wish I had more guidance in how to apply this into a job in forensics or a prosecuting attorney. Once I figured out I could have followed this interest, I was too far involved in my current field.

I also have a love for European travel, especially Italy, France and Spain and have been on almost 30 trips to these areas. I would love to be a travel agent and somehow specialize in this, but I fear taking the leap financially. So for now, I help friends and friends of friends with their trips when the opportunity arises and travel overseas regularly.

 

[luvwinnie]

I wish I had pursued a career working with animals or in healthcare. I still might...yes, at 48, thinking about a switch!

 

[Tattylou]

No regrets on my field. I'm a licensed masters level psychotherapist and I work in an awesome private group practice with an amazing staff. I make my own hours and only work 3 days/week and really enjoy the work I do with teens and young adults. I do have a school adjustment counselor license as well. Sometimes I wonder if the school schedule would be nice bc my DH is a teacher and we'd have summers off together and I'd be on the same schedule as my kids. However, I like my flexibility too much and probably make more in 3 days than I would in 5 at a school. I originally was a biology major in college, but switched to psychology for my bachelors and then got my masters in clinical mental health Counseling with a holistic specialization. I'm glad I didn't stay with bio. So, no regrets.

 

[indimom]

No regrets, but I've been open to change throughout my working years.

I graduated in 95 with a degree in journalism and photography. Within 3 years I was burnt out.
Instead I stayed home, started a licensed home day care, and enjoyed that for 16 years. (I got an associated degree in child development as required by the state.)
When my kids were 16 and 13, I started to get tired of working from home, of having my job in my face 24/7, sharing my home with a business, working 60 hours a week.
I went back to school and am now an RN on a surgical floor. It was a rough couple years when I was in school, but I really enjoy it and have no regrets. I work 36 hours a week. I have tons of free time. I make a nice income. I enjoy the teamwork on my floor. And I like the work.

You're never too old to change your career.

 

[nkereina]

I work in banking and while it can be lucrative with nice benefits, it's a volatile industry - constantly fire drills with always changing regs, and staffing levels are at the mercy of interest rates. Everything always seems to be in flux as far as process changes, organizational changes. It's never just boring status quo. I find that to be a negative, I'd rather have confidence in my job stability.

I've always had an interest in real estate but have no interest in sales. I did consider law school for a while, so that may be a path I would take if I could do it over again.

 

[erin1715]

No regrets on my field. I'm a licensed masters level psychotherapist and I work in an awesome private group practice with an amazing staff. I make my own hours and only work 3 days/week and really enjoy the work I do with teens and young adults. I do have a school adjustment counselor license as well. Sometimes I wonder if the school schedule would be nice bc my DH is a teacher and we'd have summers off together and I'd be on the same schedule as my kids. However, I like my flexibility too much and probably make more in 3 days than I would in 5 at a school. I originally was a biology major in college, but switched to psychology for my bachelors and then got my masters in clinical mental health Counseling with a holistic specialization. I'm glad I didn't stay with bio. So, no regrets.

I have often thought of getting my Master's in a counseling field and you sparked my interest once again. So I researched the options I would have for getting a job with that degree where I live, and it looks like I'd be taking a pay cut to do that if I left my current job. I have a bachelor's degree but I work as an administrative assistant at a University. Not only would I take a pay cut but I'd add a boat load of student loans on top of it. It's kind of a bummer because I'm not crazy about my job (it's not a career as far as I'm concerned) but it doesn't seem like it would pan out in the end.

It sounds like you work in a private setting which I'm sure is more lucrative than public but I'm sure the costs of starting your own clinic are expensive too. Oh well.

 

[ashley0139]

I'm still relatively young and trying to figure out the direction I really want my career to go in. I work in tv right now and like the industry, but not the specific direction I'm going in at the moment. I'm thinking about going back to school either for another undergrad or grad school, but I want to be 100% sure before I do that and I'm just not that sure yet.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Nope, never did! Have always been a SAHM, now a retired mom. Dh & I made the decision early on what my 'career' would be and I haven't worked outside the home since.Did we make lots of sacrifices? Yes, but we were all happy and not stressed out. Pinched pennies, was very creative, took vacations every year and never regrets! Found out that lots of things we think we have to have are really just 'wants'!

Can I like this twice? We also decided a long time ago to prioritize time and sanity over more money, and I'm very glad we did!

I've had several careers over the years, and no regrets. Each was right for me at the time.

After college, I worked in mutual fund banking; then I was a SAHM until DS was in 1st grade; then I started working part time as a substitute teacher; and just recently, I've added a couple days a week as a nanny. I've loved something about every phase, and am still keeping an open mind about what the next one will be!

 

[Tattylou]

I have often thought of getting my Master's in a counseling field and you sparked my interest once again. So I researched the options I would have for getting a job with that degree where I live, and it looks like I'd be taking a pay cut to do that if I left my current job. I have a bachelor's degree but I work as an administrative assistant at a University. Not only would I take a pay cut but I'd add a boat load of student loans on top of it. It's kind of a bummer because I'm not crazy about my job (it's not a career as far as I'm concerned) but it doesn't seem like it would pan out in the end.

It sounds like you work in a private setting which I'm sure is more lucrative than public but I'm sure the costs of starting your own clinic are expensive too. Oh well.

Private practice is definitely more lucrative. I joined a group practice that was already in existence, but before that I was a clinical director and oversaw 3 clinics and was making about double what you see as expected salary for the degree at age 28 in this field. However, I did not enjoy the management aspect of that position and missed just seeing my own clients. After my babies were born, I joined the group practice and now I just do psychotherapy. I only work 3 days and do just fine and that's in the Boston area where the cost of living is high. If I worked all 5 days then I'd be making a good living. Hubby is a teacher and we often joke that we both have Masters degrees, but if they were in some other fields that we'd have made a ton more money. Doing something we love and feeling like we make a difference matters more. I think Counseling and psychotherapy gets a bad wrap for having no money in it, but you can definitely make money in the field and there is always going to be a need. Some student loans can be forgiven too if you work with undeserved populations. I've never qualified for those forgiveness programs, but they do exist. I did get my masters right after college and was able to get it done before I had any major life financial obligations too, which I think is easier than uprooting your whole life....although maybe you should still think about pursuing it if it is your passion...like @indimom said it's never too late.

 

[powellrj]

When I first started my career 35 years ago, I loved it. Had the job stayed the same, I would have still loved it, but it changed over the years to something I hated with a passion. DH is in the same field, but different companies. He was ill he hated his job so much. We are both retired now, but he went back to work doing the job he had when he first began his career back in 1978. He is much happier now. We still have a DD in school, so DH will keep working until she graduates.

 

[MamaLema]

I regret it every single day...to the point where I start to feel the same nausea and feelings of panic every Sunday afternoon.

 

[TCRAIG]

Called in sick from work today-I feel blech Worn out, achy all over, fever, etc... Part of this I know is stress related. I work in a pretty stressful job & it is mentally exhausting. I feel it was the right thing to do to call in sick today, rest my mind and body, have some chicken soup & medicine, and rest on my couch & for one whole day, not think about work. and hopefully be refreshed for next week.

It is a career that I regret at times. On some days, I feel I am making a difference in the lives of others, & receive cherished gratitude & appreciation by others. On other days, I feel defeated, blamed, & backed against a wall by what is right vs what is wanted.

When I was in my early 20's, fresh out of college, I worked in the flower department of an upper scale supermarket, while I was deciding what I wanted to do with my life. I loved it-it was fun, therapeutic, I worked with such wonderful people, the company treated us well, & I was learning a new trade. I worked there for 2 years and then had to make a decision of whether I should continue there & work my way up the ladder in that company, or whether I should go to graduate school & pursue a different career. I ultimately chose grad school & worked my way up the ladder in the field I am in now. On days like this, I often think about how my life and mental health would have been different had I stayed in the flower department.....& of course there is also that pipe dream of working front desk at a WDW hotel!!!! I'm too old to change careers & not in a position, with my family to support, to start fresh in an entry level position in a different career.

Do you regret your career choice? If so, what career do you wish you had done instead?

I wish I had married money - and my husband (of 37 yrs) agrees!! Haha

 

[Skippy918]

It took me 16 years to finally find a position and company that I like. I've been there a year and I wish I had come across the job sooner.

 

[PigletsPal2]

I'm retired now, but when I was working, I never doubted my career choice. I'm a problem solver, so the field of administration was perfect for me. I excelled in office administration in high school and my first job was as secretary to Chairman of the Board of a large Washington, DC travel agency. Most of my friends who didn't go to college went to work for the government at $3200 a year without shorthand ad $3600 a year with shorthand (no, those figures aren't typos! This was in 1965 - I'm old!). My first job paid $4912 per year, with free travel benefits.

I left the travel agency when I married and after DD#1 was born 18 months later, DH's Army assignment sent us to Panama. With no car and a new baby, I was a SAHM. I didn't like it very much, so when we returned to the States, I got a job in the Admissions Office of the local community college. My secretarial and administrative skills helped me get promoted to Secretary to the Director of Admissions and Records, and then to Secretary to the Dean of the English Department.

Four years and one baby later, I found myself in Florida with two little girls while DH completed an assignment in Can Tho, Viet Nam. Again, I was unhappy as a SAHM, so my mother, who lived close by, took care of the girls while I worked in the English Department at the University of Central Florida. When DH came home, we went back to Maryland and I went back to PGCC. A little over two years later, DH got an assignment to Madrid, Spain, and I went to work at the Embassy. After that, I was hooked!

We spent the better part of the next 24 years serving at Embassies and Consulates all over the world (after Spain, we served in Peru, Turkey, England, Indonesia, Cote d'Ivoire. the Philippines, and Germany. The skills and training I had enabled me to build on what I learned in school and served me well as I established a highly respected career as an Executive Assistant in the Foreign Service, Department of State. I worked for some pretty high level State Department officers and some of my work ended up on the desk of the Secretary of State.

Most of my managers recognized my excellent training and gave me assignments with more and more responsibility. I did a lot of original writing, ranging from defending requests for housing variance waivers to the memo of which I'm most proud. When the U.S. re-established relations with Cambodia, I worked in the East Asia office. The managers had selected the officers to staff the Embassy, had found and renovated a building to be the new Embassy, and had shipped all the office furniture and communications and security equipment to the new Embassy. What they hadn't done was send a memo to the SecState asking permission to officially open relations with Cambodia! My manager, the Administrative Officer, was given that assignment, which he promptly turned over to me. He have me the points that needed to be addressed and the routing list of the State Dept. officers who had to sign off on this memo. I worked on it for two days and turned it over to him with the disclaimer that I had never done a memo of this magnitude, that it was well above my pay grade, that I had no false pride of authorship, and that my feelings wouldn't be hurt by any changes. To my utter astonishment, my original memo went through 17 coordinators with only two minor changes: someone changed "an" to "the" and I mentioned "the destruction of the Soviet Union" and someone changed "destruction" to "disestablishment." SecState signed off, we were officially in Cambodia!

My experience in writing and editing all kinds of documents, reports, briefings, and white papers led to my second career as a book and short story editor. I don't have enough work to support myself, but I don't need to support myself. DH and I both have government annuities and Social Security, so I edit because I enjoy the work, I'm good at it, and it keeps me off the streets, stealing hubcaps. I've edited six short stories and a mystery novel, which has been published, so my name is in the Library of Congress!

Queen Collee

 

[Kriii]

I have always loved my career choice and strongly encourage young people to major in something they feel drawn too rather than settle for something that they think will pay the bills best. My DH was strongly discouraged from his true passion. While successful in his career, he does not really like it but cannot afford to change things now. I have always thought that his parents did him a real disservice by leaning on him so heavily to follow his current career path. The two of us refuse to do this to our own kids. I do know people who have changed careers mid-life and know it can be done, but it takes some real sacrifice and usually a supportive partner who can assume responsibility for the bills.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

My career as a nurse is exhausting and stressful and most days I certainly feel the burnout, but I don't think I made the wrong choice. I make an excellent salary and my work schedule is very flexible and decided by me, so overall the benefit is worth more than the burden.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

I love the company I work for, and the variety of opportunities it provides me. At this point I think my career is a combo of management and problem solving, which allows me to work in many different areas. I do still wish I could do some writing or editing on the side though.

 

[Hannahinwonderland]

I'm 23 and working on a PhD in my field (School Psychology). I'm passionate about it and looking forward to being able to pursue my career, but I do feel twinges of regret sometimes. I had to quit my DCP early to start graduate school and sometimes I can visualize myself, still working at Disney over a year after I was supposed to finish the program, happy as a clam, not stressed, telling corny jokes.

 

[lifesavacation]

Nope. I'm doing exactly what I should be doing. I'm a small business owner.

If you had asked me 5 or even 10 years ago, the answer would have been different. I have a master's degree and was working in my respective field. I'm now doing something unrelated to my education. Funny how things work out.

 

[dzy76]

I'm not sure regret is what I feel. More like a restlessness and a need to change everything in my life.

I was an executive secretary for five years after going to secretarial business school. I married my high-school boyfriend and our first son led me to try daycare in my home. I did that for 3 years. About 3 months after my third son was born, I decided to go back to school. Went to our local community college and became an RN. Went to work in our local hospital where I worked as a charge nurse on the Medical/Surgical floor for 5 years and then moved to the ICU. I worked in the ICU for 15 years until I was hurt moving a patient. So a year ago I moved to case management and now I'm the emergency department case manager. I don't hate it. It's not what I loved (ICU) but lifting patients isn't an option if I want to live without constant pain. Some days I feel like I help someone and some days I feel like I'm swimming upstream in an impossible situation.

My dream when I was young was to work for Disney. I thought I'd go to California after secretarial school and work for an office or for Disney travel company. But, I let myself be talked into coming back to our small rural town and get married. He didn't want to move anywhere else. If I have regrets, it's that. I don't for a minute regret my three sons. And I have a beautiful granddaughter. I was married 32 years (together 37) when he lied and cheated on me. Marriage over. The only winners in the mess are the lawyers. I'm glad I'm a nurse because I can still support myself. I'm able to keep my home and pay my bills. So for now, I need to stay the course.

But -- because my sons are grown and my marriage is over - I feel the need to finally pursue MY dreams. I'm not sure how that will happen. I no longer want to move to California. I think I'd much rather move to Florida. Starting over scares me. I know nothing about living there. I don't want to go back to school to finish my BSN. I started to a few years ago, but just don't have the desire to spend the money and my brain is so messy due to the divorce that I can't think in those serious terms right now. I have seen that Florida wages are WAY below what I make in Oregon, so that scares me. What I'd love to do most??? It's pretty silly maybe - but I LOVE coffee and I'd love to work in a Disney park at a Starbucks location!! Preferably Main Street!!!! If I knew I could make enough to afford a small condo somewhere semi-safe and close to Disney property I'd absolutely go live my dream!!!